What is the best way to cut brake cable outers cleanly?

[Freddie]

I have a Shimano tool, but it routinely ends up pushing the coiled metal in on itself, which is a faff to fix and often leaves a sharp edge. I know Sheldon recommends a dremel, but that seems a little excessive and the cheap one I have takes forever. I am looking for a quick and simple method to get a clean cut, every time.

Anyone have any suggestions?

[beardy]

I use a rather old fashioned hacksaw followed by a file to get things nice and smooth.
Then poke something into the hole and gently wiggle it to open up the liner ready for the inner cable.

Time consuming but gives a nice finish and uses tools that I already have.

[TonyR]

An angle grinder (Dremel's big brother!)

[Brucey]

An angle grinder (Dremel's big brother!)

^ with ultra thin cutting disc.

Or cut any way you like, then grind the end flat and square.

cheers

[markfh]

Or even a Dremel type tool with a thin cutting disk provided you make sure that it cuts through at right angles.

Plus a 1.0 or 1.2 mm drill to open up the liner that has invariably been melted due to the heat generated by the cutting disk .

[MikeDee]

You need to use a file to make the end flat anyway and an awl to open up the plastic liner. Cutting disks fuse the liner end so cable cutters are better anyway.

[RRSODL]

I cut the outer with a bit of old cable in.

[531colin]

Side cutters........... First cut any old how.
If you need to, you can make a second cut to remove the bit of spiral wound metal that gets pushed into the hole, and to cut the spiral at an angle so the end is square......I don't think I explained that well?.... .....If you make a second cut, you can get the end fairly square....I have never found a need to file, grind, or otherwise pretty up the cut end.

[interestedcp]

1. Try to make the cut really fast and powerful. I use both hands on the cutter and try to apply force as suddenly and powerfully as I can.

2. Some people report that using a small piece of sacrificial wire _inside_ the outer cable when cutting helps. Only tried it a couple of times. It seems to help.

[Brucey]

.....Cutting disks fuse the liner end ...

er, that varies with cutting disc, method, and liner material. If you use the wrong discs, badly, on cheap cable, you can make all kinds of messes. You do need to use an awl on the liner whichever technique you use (with the possible exception of flood-cooled cutting or grinding, or cutting with cable inside).

BTW filing works reasonably well on brake outer, and so does using cutters (if you are happy with the end it produces) because the spiral is relatively soft. But filing does not work well on gear cable outer (the wires are hardened) so if you want to do a proper job (ie that will last best, and cause least trouble) you should preferably cut using a disc and/or grind those anyway. You can use cutters but the results are less good (the jaggy ends tend to move around and work their way through plastic ferrules) and the cutters themselves wear out. Granted a good set will last a fair while in occasional use but in heavy daily use they all clap out pretty quickly really.

[BTW when you buy cables, even quite cheap ones, the ends of the housing are almost invariably ground square, never just cut].

cheers

[FarOeuf]

put the outer into the jaws of the cutters as close to the hinge as possible, for maximum force.

[TonyR]

Plus a 1.0 or 1.2 mm drill to open up the liner that has invariably been melted due to the heat generated by the cutting disk .

If you put a bit of old inner cable in first, that's not necessary.

[simonineaston]

I bought an grinder a couple decades ago and one of the many tasks I now use it for is tidying up cable outers - it was worth it for that alone, I think...

[gregoryoftours]

I agree that a bench grinder is great for finishing off the outers. You can avoid the liner melting by carefully jabbing the outer onto the wheel a few times instead of getting heat build up by leaving it there. I've seen that thing about plastic gear outer caps pierced by the metal strands lots of times. It's best to use proper thick ended metal gear outer caps, should help with crispness too. I guess it happens especially when people are ragging increasingly hard on the shifter to overcome friction buildup in the cable/mech. It can't be good for the shifter either.

[bainbridge]

Side cutters........... First cut any old how.
If you need to, you can make a second cut to remove the bit of spiral wound metal that gets pushed into the hole, and to cut the spiral at an angle so the end is square......I don't think I explained that well?.... .....If you make a second cut, you can get the end fairly square....I have never found a need to file, grind, or otherwise pretty up the cut end.

Same here, one cut with side cutters to cut to size then another to trim out the spikey bit of the spiral.